The world has witnessed—and continues to witness— several never-ending debates, like cats or dogs, Apple or Android, streaming services or cable television, remote work or in-house. 

While these debates continue in the real world, the online business world seems to be engaged in a different argument altogether:

Inbound marketing or outbound marketing?

Some swear by outbound.

Some are willing to die on the inbound hill. 

In reality, there is no one-size-fits-all rule when it comes to marketing.

Inbound marketing works.

Outbound marketing does, too.

It is a case of whatever rocks your boat.

But who’s to say you can’t enjoy the best of both worlds? 

You sure can.

The goal of this blog post is not to join the debate but to spell out the benefits of inbound marketing and how you can use it to complement your outbound marketing efforts.

What is inbound marketing?

Growing up, I loved watching sugar ants crawl out of little cracks in the walls of my childhood home. I would watch them for hours as they matched in such remarkable coordination to areas where they could find food—mostly half-open sugar jars. 

Inbound marketing is like intentionally leaving sugar jars open for ants to find. Only this time, you are not using sugar and not attracting ants. Instead, you consistently leave valuable insights in plain sight to attract leads to your brand. 

Say your brand sells products that help clear acne. The greatest need of your target audience would be to achieve radiant, acne-free skin. In this case, your inbound marketing will involve creating high-quality blog articles and social media posts that address acne concerns.

Some examples include: 

• How to Choose the Right Acne Products for Your Skin Type.
• The Role of Diet in Acne.
• Common Acne Myths Debunked.
• Skincare Routine 101 for Acne-Prone Skin.
• The Ultimate Guide to Understanding Acne Types.

This way, their curiosity and search for solutions to their pressing needs will lead them to find you. Not only do you offer your target audience these valuable insights about acne, but you also subtly introduce your products as the much-needed solution they crave.

On the other hand, outbound marketing means searching for leads and potential clients, doing all you can to show them how much they need you and your services. 

Inbound marketing doesn’t end with creating valuable content to attract new leads. It continues with engaging and nurturing leads through to conversion.

Is inbound marketing effective?

Inbound marketing works—there is proof that it does. 

The proof of its effectiveness is in the statistics:

• The average cost of leads is 80% less after five months of consistent inbound marketing.
• Properly executed inbound marketing is 10 times more effective than outbound marketing.
• 79% of brands with blogs record positive results for inbound marketing.
• Inbound marketers save a whopping $14 for every client they acquire.
• Inbound marketers record double the average site conversion rate.

If social proof counts for anything, you have enough evidence to convince you that inbound marketing is worth something.

Five reasons your brand needs inbound marketing

Content is king, and if you play your cards right, your website and social media can become the throne upon which it sits. There are several reasons your brand needs inbound marketing. Let’s explore five of them.

1. Cost-effectiveness 

Which do you think would cost more?

Using one open jar of sugar to attract many ants?

Or, taking cubes of sugar to different ant colonies?

The latter would cost more, in my opinion—more sugar, time and energy. The former is like using a jar to kill more ants, if you get what I mean.

It’s the same thing with inbound marketing. 

As highlighted earlier, inbound marketers save $14 for every client they acquire. That adds up to some big bucks when you start talking about hundreds of clients. 

If you are a small brand without big budgets for the outbound type of marketing, you are better off leaving good jars of valuable insights open on channels like your blog page to attract leads and save you some money while at it.

Say you are a brand owner with a big budget. I doubt you would pass on an opportunity to attract leads on the side for less than the cost of outbound marketing. Some big brands take this inbound-outbound approach, too—brands like Nike, HubSpot, LinkedIn, and Coca-Cola. 

Does this mean you should throw outbound marketing out the window? Heck no.

It means enjoying the best of both worlds.

2. Long-term value

Inbound marketing content stands the test of time. 

Scour the internet. You’ll find inbound marketing content many years old that still holds valuable insight and potential to convert leads into customers. 

In years to come, your blog posts, podcasts, YouTube videos, and social media campaigns will still be live and attracting leads—unless you delete them. Of course, some of these materials, like blog posts, may need to be updated to reflect new information that may have changed since their original production. However, they have long-term value that will serve your business in the long run.

3. High-quality and qualified leads

Remember the acne cleanser brand example we talked about earlier? If such a brand had a blog page that threw more light on acne management, guess who it would likely attract. You guessed right. It would attract people who suffer from acne and are actively seeking solutions.

That is one of the beautiful things about inbound marketing. 

When done right, it can attract not just any leads but high-quality and qualified leads who might as well be asking to be nurtured and converted. With strategies like Search Engine Optimization as icing on the cake, you can anticipate the thought processes of qualified leads, incorporate keywords and phrases into your content, and lead them straight to you.  

4. Measurability

When it comes to marketing, you want to be able to see data and measure results and returns on investments. With inbound marketing, you can easily keep your finger on the pulse. You can assess content marketing metrics like:

• Click-through rate.
• Website traffic.
• Conversion rate.
• Time on page.
• Content shares and backlinks.
• Traffic sources.
• Social media engagement.
• Subscriber growth and lots more.

5. Preference

Most people would appreciate a value-packed podcast or a detailed blog post that answers the questions on their minds. But not everyone fancies receiving a cold call from a stranger trying to sell something when they are in the middle of a stressful day. 

Most modern consumers would pick content over outbound marketing. It’s the reason content generates 3x more leads. It is a thing of preference. 

If you can give your audience what they want—what they prefer— to consume, you’ll increase your chances of getting better engagement with your brand and increased conversions. 

Get the ball rolling.

If part of your brand goals includes:

• Saving client acquisition costs.
• Implementing strategies with long-term value.
• Attracting more high-quality and qualified leads.
• Accountability with your marketing approach.
• Reaching your audience through their preferred medium.

Then, you need to jump on inbound marketing like yesterday.

A blog is a common inbound marketing channel with proof of impressive return on investments. 

Statistics show that companies with blogs record 67% more leads monthly than companies that don’t blog. A rich and consistently updated blog page increases your lead generation and helps you provide value to your audience while serving as proof of thought leadership. 

If there was ever a time to start blogging or taking your existing blog page seriously, it’s now. Thankfully, blog writing is our forte at The Fourth Writers. 

Need help curating blog topics and crafting high-quality, attention-grabbing blog posts?

Shoot us a message—let’s turn your blog page into an attraction for leads.

We can’t wait to meet you.